In the Pink: Confessions of a Cotton Candy Color Lover

Posted on 23 August 2016

I admit it: I love the color pink and I consider it to be a staple in my wardrobe. Maybe I should have gotten over the fixation of wearing a rosy palette after, at the age of 4, I sold out by agreeing to have my long hair cut in a Mia Farrow-style Pixie - in exchange for a shimmery pink sundress and a pair of Mary Janes. I had to have that dress and was - obviously - willing to do anything to get it. I probably looked like a tomboy in a sad polyester dress but I didn’t care. Nearly a half-century later, my hair has never again been so short - but my love of wearing the color pink has lingered so that shades of pink are veritable neutrals in my closet.

The thing is, dresses, tunics or tees in shades of pale pink, orchid or magenta are flattering against a hint of a tan and at this stage in life, I’ll take 'flattering' wherever I can get it. In fact, pink can be worn in a sophisticated fashion, especially here in Florida, where we celebrate pastels and vivid colors in apparel. A rule I follow (only loosely) is to wear one garment in my favorite feminine color and then tone down the other pieces so that the pink is indeed the highlight. So if I wear my Ruby Rd. Chevron Tunic, it’s with slim white pants or shorts and if I wear my Lost River dress, it’s with a subtle, metallic sandal and soft, shimmering jewelry. If I wear jeans and a white blouse you can bet your Barbie Corvette there will be a big screaming-pink handbag on my arm.

There’s no such thing as ‘pink is not my color’. There is a shade of pink to complement every complexion. For those who lean toward warmer colors, there are watermelon and coral pinks and, for dark skin tones, soft, cameo pink is gorgeous. For the fair-complected and silver-maned, there are bolder colors like fuchsia or ‘hot’ pink that perfectly highlight both lighter skin tones and silvery hair. Truly, have you ever seen anyone look bad in hot pink?

Apparently, I’m not alone in my addiction to pink. Madame Chanel preferred a shade close to a ballet slipper while Dolce & Gabbana love tropical purple-based orchid pinks. Ralph Lauren popped his pinks with orange or green in rugby striped sweaters and marketed them as American Classics.

While it’s natural to wear pink in Florida you might think it’s more difficult elsewhere in other parts of the world - but no, not so. In my 30’s I lived in Rome for a few years where my first purchase was a winter coat in - you guessed it - whisper-pink cashmere. I never tired of that coat. And these days, if you see me in the airport on my way to NYC or Boston and you think I’m wearing the proverbial northern uniform of head-to-toe black - look again, that’s a pink t-shirt peeking out from under my sweater!